Nephilim

They are tall and strong, but to me their most striking feature is how quiet and somber they are. A more melancholic people has never existed.

- Ysolda Farwalker in Nephilim: Studies of the Tall Folk

The Nephilim, written as "𒉌𒉈𒉎" in the First Runes, more commonly called Giants and sometimes called Tall Folk, are a race of tall humanoids who inhabit various places in El-Bayir.

The Giants call themselves "Nephilim" in their own language of the Nor'kosh'ti, meaning "Of The World."

The Giants are among the original inhabitants of El-Bayir, or they were at least present before the coming of the Elohim and the Worldshaping. The Giants are "adopted children" of Beld, and have been placed under His divine protection. 

Nephilim have long and complicated names, with many consonants, syllables, and harsh and guttural sounds. 

The history of what happened to the Giants remains shrouded in mystery and relatively unknown. Their population was low, allowing for relative co-existence with the Gods and Beldkind. It is known, however, that Apollyon, against the wishes of the other Gods, somehow killed or otherwise removed or annihilated all of the She-Giants, dooming the race to eventually die in what became called the Horrid Rapture (except for the Cloud Giant, whose She-Giants managed to escape this fate). This act shocked the Gods and caused immense strife amongst them, leading Apollyon to exile Himself to an isolated land. As the Giants are immortal, some still live today, but there are very few left in the world. 

Giants are somewhat intelligent, though not as much as Beldkind. They have language and use primitive tools of bone, wood, and stone. They are observed to tattoo themselves and adorn themselves with jewelry and accessories. Giants sing in a very low bass voice, often singing sad hymns. Giants are also known to create and play flutes, drums, and string instruments. Their temperament is generally passive, peaceful, and shy, though the Storm Giant are known to mercilessly attack all who trespass in their lands on sight.

Giants eat the ground itself, consuming rocks, clouds, fire, and seawater. Additionally, they are known to have adopted the consumption of plants after Zot's creation of plants. They do not eat meat. Though they may herd certain animals, like cows and mammoth, for milk, sheared furs, and other goods, they do not kill their animals and they do not eat them. Killing a Giant's animal is considered the easiest way to ensure an early death by their hands, as even the friendliest Giant will usually be enraged by the untimely death of an animal. Giants form extremely close bonds with animals and will bury a dead animal as if it was a Giant, giving it full funerary rights and overseeing several complex death rituals.

Giants are associated with various elements of the world. They are cold to the touch (except for Fire Giants, who are hot to the touch), and their skin color and texture is usually reminiscent of the element they are associated with. Upon a Giant's death, their body will turn into the element they are associated with (for example, the corpse of a Stone Giant will petrify over time and a Fire Giant's corpse will spontaneously combust until nothing remains), returning to the world from whence they came. The remnants of Giants nonetheless have latent magical properties.

Beld attempted to create She-Giants to save the race, but He was unable to breathe life into them, due to the Giants being of different substance. The results of this failed experiment was the race of Goliath.

In the modern day, many thrill seekers and poachers hunt Giants for sport and trophies. 

There are also Donere's mockery of the Nephilim, the monstrous Hill Giant. Despite their name, they are not actually Nephilim, but monstrous creations of Donere who serve His bidding.

Races of Nephilim

* NOTE: Hill Giants are not giants, but rather a creation of Donere which intentionally mocks them and their plight. They have been added to this list for convenience.